3 May is World Press Freedom Day was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in December 1993.

With the honest media in many countries currently being accused of peddling “fake news” by politicians who habitually lie to their own people, and who do not seem to understand the vital role that a free press plays in the democratic process, this is an opportunity to:

celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom;

assess the state of press freedom throughout the world;

defend the media from attacks on their independence;

and pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the line of duty.